Valley Branch Watershed to remove five Legion Avenue homes; offers restored shoreline to Lake Elmo

The Valley Branch Watershed District told the Lake Elmo City Council on April 14, 2026, that it has acquired five properties along Legion Avenue because repeated flooding made the homes unsafe. The district said a contractor will remove four houses in May 2026 and a fifth later this summer, restore the shoreline with native plantings and preserve as many existing trees as possible, and monitor the site for one to three years before turning it over to a long-term steward.

According to the district's presentation, the parcels could be conveyed to Lake Elmo for use as open space or a passive public amenity, with potential trail connections to nearby neighborhoods and a possible revision to a local T-intersection to create a cul-de-sac that would improve emergency-vehicle access. If the city declines to accept the parcels, the district plans to sell them at public auction with conservation easements that would prohibit building.

City staff said the district will fund restoration work; the city would assume only modest ongoing maintenance if it accepted the parcels, and the project could provide a trail link from the golf-course area to downtown. Staff asked the council whether it would be interested in accepting all five parcels, only some, or none; council members generally supported taking the sites and asked that the parks commission review concept plans and produce implementation recommendations.

What happens next: Staff will refer the concept and restoration plans to the parks commission and return with cost and maintenance implications before any property transfer. No formal action was taken at the workshop.